Crisis and Opportunity: Sustainability in American Agriculture(Our Sustainable Future)

With the decline of family farms and rural communities and the rise of corporate farming and the resulting environmental degradation, American agriculture is in crisis. But this crisis offers the opportunity to rethink agriculture in sustainable terms. Here one of the most eloquent and influential proponents of sustainable agriculture explains what this means. These engaging essays describe what sustainable agriculture is, why it began, and how it can succeed. Together they constitute a clear and compelling vision for rebalancing the ecological, economic, and social dimensions of agriculture to meet the needs of the present without compromising the future. In Crisis and Opportunity, John E. Ikerd outlines the consequences of agricultural industrialization, then details the methods that can restore economic viability, ecological soundness, and social responsibility to our agricultural system and thus ensure sustainable agriculture as the foundation of a sustainable food system and a sustainable society.

Table of Contents:
ForewordAcknowledgementsChapter 1. Crisis and Opportunity in American Agriculture Section I - The Industrialization of American AgricultureChapter 2. The Industrialization of Agriculture: Why We Should Stop Promoting ItChapter 3. Corporate Agriculture and Family FarmsChapter 4. The Corporatization of America Section II - New Hope for the Future of FarmingChapter 5. New Hope for the Future of Farming: Rediscovering AgricultureChapter 6. Farming in Harmony with Nature and SocietyChapter 7. Reclaiming the Sacred in Food and Farming Section III - Principles of Sustainable AgricultureChapter 8. Sustainable Agriculture: Do We Really Need to Define It?Chapter 9. Foundational Principles: Soils, Stewardship, and SustainabilityChapter 10. Economics of Sustainable FarmingChapter 11. The Renaissance of Rural America Section IV - The New American FarmerChapter 12. Walking the Talk of Sustainable AgricultureChapter 13. Survival Strategies for Small FarmsChapter 14. Marketing in the Niches: The Key to Sustainable FarmingChapter 15. Local Organics Saves Farmland and CommunitiesChapter 16. Farming in the Future: The Triple Bottom Line Section V - Creating Sustainable Food and Farming SystemsChapter 17. The Real Costs of GlobalizationChapter 18. Redirecting Government Policies for Agricultural SustainabilityChapter 19. The New American Food SystemChapter 20. American Agriculture, after Fossil Energy 

About the Author :
John E. Ikerd is professor emeritus of agricultural economics at the University of Missouri. He is the author of Sustainable Capitalism, A Return to Common Sense, and Small Farms are Real Farms.

Review :
"For those who want to understand what sustainable agriculture is all about, Crisis and Opportunity is a major tour de force. Ikerd's book is a profound source of information, perspective, and inspiration." Fred Magdoff , professor emeritus of soils at the University of Vermont and co-editor of Hungry for Profit "An amazing collection of essays that reveal some of the clearest thinking on the sustainability of food and farming systems. This is a clarion call to come to our senses about our own future health and well-being as well as that of our communities and the planet that sustains us." Larry Yee , director of the University of California Cooperative Extension, Ventura County, and cochair and cofounder of the Association of Family Farms "Ikerd counters the efficiency model of industrial agriculture and presents a more rational path that leads to opportunity in agriculture and a more civil society. The book is well written, easy to read, and challenges us to a higher order of thinking." James E. Horne , president of Kerr Center for Sustainable Agriculture Inc. and co-author of The Next Green Revolution